Twisted Twilight Dreams
by bloodizmyheroin
Summary: Bella has reluctantly moved to Forks from her home in Australia to live with her father, Charlie. She's fiesty, clumsy and a little bit weird. When she meets the mysterious Cullens, she enters a world she never believed possible - the world of vampires.
1. New Meat For The Crackpot

**Disclaimer: Don't own anything *runs and cries uncontrollably in a corner***

**(BPOV)**

The noise of my alarm clock pounded in my ears. I groaned, rolling over to hit the button with my fist. It was 6:15AM on my first day at school in Forks, Washington. It was also my first day at an American high school.

My parents, Charlie and Renee, had gotten divorced when I was a few months old. Renee hated the constant gloom and omnipresent rain of Forks, so she decided to move half way across the world to sunny Australia. I grew up in the suburbs of Perth, the capital of Western Australia and also the most isolated city in the world, and every January I would go and visit Charlie in Forks for three weeks, where we would have a late Christmas and celebrate New Years together before I had to go back in time for school in February. At least until the year I was thirteen. That was the year I put my foot down and insisted that Charlie come to us for Christmas. My mother Renee was not a happy camper, to say the least.

Two years ago Renee met Phil Dwyer, her new husband. He played Australian Rules football, so his job involved a lot of flying around. At first she stayed with me in Perth, watching Phil's games on TV. But she missed him, and hated not being there to support him, so I decided to uproot myself and move in with Charlie, who was only too happy to oblige, even if he was half way across the world. Renee half-heartedly tried to convince me not to go, but my mind was made up.

The plane ride to Port Angeles, which was three hours to Sydney from Perth, fourteen to LA and yet another two and a half to Seattle from there, was arduous to say the least. It was one of the many things I disliked about going to Forks.

I rolled myself out of bed and made my way to the bathroom across the hall (there was only one bathroom), stepping over discarded clothes and tangled bed sheets that all threatened to topple me over. Thankfully Charlie had already left for work. As the Police Chief, he had to be in at work pretty early.

I turned on the hot water, stripped out of my oversized pyjama pants and tee shirt and stepped in. After fifteen minutes in the shower (Thank whatever god you believe in for Infinite Hot Water Systems) I turned off the water, wrapped a fluffy red towel around myself and stepped out. Luckily I had put my fresh clothes in the top draw of the vanity last night, ready and waiting for me.

In Australia, uniforms were required at every school. Style wasn't really an issue when you all looked alike (although that didn't seem to matter to most), but now I had to pick what I wanted to wear.

I put on a pair of faded blue skinny jeans with the ends tucked into my new black, waterproof boots and a long sleeved, collared white shirt with a black _Doctor Who_ t-shirt over the top. My silver peace symbol necklace sparkled from left over water residue. I brushed and blow-dried my long, brown hair into a low ponytail with a few strands left loose to frame my face. I brushed my teeth and took a glance at myself in the mirror. I sighed. Why didn't I look like a girl from Australia was supposed to look? I should be tan, sporty, possibly even blonde, maybe a Netball or footie player, too. Instead I was pale white, without the excuse of freckles, blue eyes or red hair, as well as clumsy and awkward. I liked things like classical literature and music, British television and anime. I just...didn't fit in.

I strode down the stairs to the kitchen, grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl on the counter. I checked the clock on the wall next to the sink. 7:35, time to go.

I collected my battered old backpack, which contained my iPod, some notebooks and a pencil case, my weather-beaten old copies of _Wuthering Heights _and _Romeo and Juliet_, my car keys, spare film for my antique Polaroid camera, a metal tin I kept my photos in, was covered in various pins and badges depicting characters from different anime shows and had a little 3D Tardis keychain hanging from the zipper, from its spot on the back of one of Charlie's mismatched dining room chairs. I shrugged on my grey raincoat; slung the water proof case I had bought for my camera around my neck (with it in there, of course) and exited the house, locking the door behind me.

My car was a rusty red, '54 Chevy pick-up truck that Charlie bought from Billy Black, an old friend from La Push, the tiny Indian reservation on the coast, who was now in a wheelchair. It couldn't go over 90 km p/h, and it made an awfully loud noise, but I loved it. Charlie taught me how to drive the American way, which is the literal opposite of what I'm used to in every conceivable way, but Charlie made a good teacher so I really didn't have much trouble after a while.

The drive to school was quite, save for the loud rumble of my truck. I made my way to the highway, knowing that practically everything in Forks was off it in some form or another. Soon enough I almost passed the high school. It had one sign, declaring itself as "Forks High School: Home of the Spartans".

The school was small, but that was to be expected in a town the size of a large suburb. The building itself was arranged into little brick boxes, each with a number on the wall.

I pulled up to the building in the very front, the one with the 'Office' sign on the door. I got out of my truck and made my way over to it. Once inside, I walked up to a counter crowded with wire baskets filled with paper of varying colours and pots of ferns, where a rather large lady wearing a dated purple blouse and cream slacks was tapping somewhat uncertainly at the keyboard of a boxy, outdated computer.

I took my camera from its case, lifted it to my eye and snapped a picture. The lady jumped in her seat with surprise, looking around for the source of the flash until her gaze came to rest on me. I smiled widely at her, showing my teeth, as I pulled the snapshot out of the camera to develop.

"Can I help you, miss?" she asked with a slightly annoyed, southern drawl to her aged voice.

"I'm Bella Swan, I'm new." I told her. Her shallow brown eyes, which were surrounded by cheap looking, overdone make up and over sized 80's glasses, brightened in recognition. Yep, she was defiantly a gossiper. She smiled pleasantly at me.

"Welcome to Forks High School, Bella. My, what a lovely accent you have. My name is Mrs. Cope. Now there are several forms I have to go over with you." I could see she knew exactly whom I was even without me saying. The daughter of the Chief's capricious ex-wife come home at last was obviously a familiar, not to mention popular, topic of conversation.

She went over some paper work with me, pulled from a precariously stacked pile on the desk, gave me my timetable, and highlighted the best route to each of my classes on a small map. She also gave me a slip that I had to get all of my teachers to sign and hand back at the end of the day.

"Thank you very much." I said politely, peeling the developed photo off the pale blue backing paper. "Nice." I mumbled, showing Mrs. Cope the picture. She smiled at me like a mother who can't punish her child because they're just too darn cute. I smiled back widely and mischievously, stuffing the papers into my bag and placing the photo in my small rectangular tin as I hurried out the door, not wanting to be late on my first day.

As I pulled into the student car park (having followed a long line of traffic all heading in the same direction), I was relieved to see that the condition of my truck wasn't going to stand out here. The most obvious looking car was a shiny silver Volvo and it stuck out among the many older, cheaper cars like a Goth in church. I cut the engine as soon as I parked, not wanting to draw unnecessary attention to myself.

I pulled my timetable out of my bag to check my classes. I had English with Mr. Mason first in Building 3. I could handle that. I quickly stuffed my timetable back in my bag and hopped out of the car, locking the driver side door behind me. I felt a nervous flutter in my stomach, but quickly squashed it. No one was going to bite me. What was I worried about? All I had to remember was to keep my shoulders back, my head high and to never let them see me sweat. I sighed internally. That was easier said than done. But I _would_ succeed. And with that I swung my bag onto my back, pulled up my hood and strode off to class, trying my hardest not to slip on the wet sidewalk or trip on a crack.

I followed two unisex raincoats to a smallish red brick building with a three painted on the wall by the door. I don't know exactly what I had been expecting an American classroom to be like, but it wasn't much different to my English class back home.

The floors were covered in cream linoleum, the two-man desks arranged in four neat rows of three. I guessed that I was close to being late because nearly all the desks were full. I copied the two people I had followed in when they hung their raincoats on a long row of hooks at the front of the classroom and went to hand my slip to the teacher. He gawked visibly at me when I told him my name. I raised my eyebrow at him questioningly and he quickly signed my form and told me to sit at an empty seat at the back of the room.

Class went by quickly. As I was packing up my bag, an Asian boy with an acne problem and black hair like an oil slick in both senses of the word, came up to me and introduced himself to me.

"Hi, I'm Eric. Are you Isabella Swan?" I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. Obviously Charlie had been calling me by my full name in my absence.

"Actually, I prefer Bella." I said as politely as I could. I had to keep reminding myself that he was only being helpful.

"Well Bella, can I walk you to your next class?" I wasn't so naïve that I couldn't see he was probably trying to flirt with me. "What do you have?"

"Umm…I think, History with Watson."

"Cool, my next class is near there." Yep, definitely a flirt. This could be a long day.

"So Forks is a lot different to Australia, huh?" he asked as we walked to my class. I could have sworn the people behind us were walking close enough to eavesdrop.

"Very."

"Does it rain much?"

"Almost every day during winter and spring, but summer and autumn are the complete opposite. Very sunny and _hot_." I said, drawing out the 'o' and making my voice high pitched.

"You don't look very tan." He replied.

"My mum is part albino." I joked. He didn't seem to get it.

We spent the rest of the walk in silence. It was kind of awkward because we really didn't have anything to say to each other, but I was too wrapped up in my obsessive little _Naruto_ inspired Sasuke-Sakura daydream to really care.

When we reached the door of my classroom, he wished me luck and hoped that we had more classes together. I responded with a hell of a lot of fake enthusiasm, which he seemed to take as genuine, and went inside.

The rest of the morning seemed to pass the same way. Not many people came up and introduced themselves and those who did had their picture taken on the way over. After about the fourth person, people seemed to take the camera, the badges on my bag and my long rambling speeches about absolutely nothing as a sign to stay away. I didn't care. I was much happier on my own then with other people.

Mr Varner, my Trigonometry teacher who I would have hated anyway just because of the subject he taught was the only one who made me introduce myself. I tried to hide the crazy as much as I could, which resulted in some rambling stammers, blushing and tripping over my own boots on the way to my seat. The girl whose desk I caught myself on whispered something that sounded like "What a freak" to her desk partner, who giggled in agreement.

I walked to lunch with the one girl (I couldn't remember her name) who had bothered to sit with me in both Trig and Spanish. She was at least two inches shorter than me, but her wildly curly hair made up most of the difference between us. I listened vaguely as she babbled on about school, teachers, how I would love her friends and blah, blah, blah, I really didn't catch the rest.

As we entered the lunch room, all eyes became trained on me. I felt the familiar blush of self-consciousness creep into my cheeks as I cast my eyes to the floor. I followed the girl's heels into the lunch line, only looking up when necessary. She led me to a table filled with people, who she introduced me too. I forgot all of their names as soon as she spoke them, though they all seemed impressed by her bravery in speaking to me. Maybe it was because I was new and from a different country, or maybe because I looked like a freaky mish-mash of an art, sci-fi and anime nerd. Or maybe it was the pentagram necklace I wore. The boy from English, Eric, waved at me from across the room.

It was during that lunch time, trying to answer the questions of seven curious strangers, that I first saw _them_.

**That's it for the first chapter. I'm currently on holiday so the next update probably won't be for awhile. Pretty please review, it makes me update quicker! Constructive critisicsm is welcome, but please no flames!**


	2. Lunchtime Confrontation

**Hello, faithful readers. Thank you to everyone who has stuck it out and waited for the second chapter. I was on holiday in NZ and had a serious lack of internet access, and then we went and moved house! So, thank you again, and onward to the next chapter!**

**Disclaimer: Must you make me say it again? Fine - I do not own Twilight, Forks, Perth, the USA, Australia or a 1960's Polaroid Camera. Happy now?**

**(BPOV)**

They were the most beautiful people I had ever seen. There were five, three boys and two girls in total, all vastly different but still very much alike.

One of the boys was big, muscled like a serious weight lifter with dark curly hair, the second was muscular as well, but thinner with honey blonde hair and the third was the most boyish looking, maybe the youngest, with bronze coloured hair. The girls were opposites. One was long and slim with long golden hair waving gently down her back. She looked like someone you'd see on the cover of _Zoo_ or as a _Playboy_ centrefold. The other was tiny; she couldn't have been bigger than five ft, thin in the extreme with dainty features and short, inky black hair spiked up sharply around her head. All of them were chalky pale with dark eyes, despite their range in hair colours, and had dark circles, almost bruises, under their eyes, like they hadn't slept in ages or were recovering from a broken nose. But that couldn't be, because all of their features were perfectly straight and unblemished. The girls didn't even wear makeup.

As I watched, the tiny girl with hair like a hedgehog rose with her tray, and threw the unbitten apple and unopened can of Coke into the bin before dumping her tray into a chute and walking, almost dancing the movement was so incredibly fluid and graceful, out the back doors. The others remained where they were, not speaking, not eating, all looking off in different directions.

"Who are they?" I asked my neighbour, who was shovelling something that looked like it might be chilli, or some kind of bean thing, into her mouth. I had to try very hard not to gag. She swallowed loudly, wiping her mouth with the back of her arm, and giggled.

"I see you've noticed the Cullens and the Hales." She said, leaning in. Her breath smelled like low grade beef and kidney beans. "They're the foster children of Dr and Mrs Cullen."

"They look a bit old for foster children." I said, trying discreetly to lean away from the girl's stinky breath.

"Well, they are now. Dr. Cullen is in his late twenties, think. The Hales, Jasper and Rosalie, are twins – the blondes – and have been with Mrs. Cullen, who I think is a few years older than the Dr., since they were kids. She's their aunt or something. The others are the Cullens. The one who left was Alice; she's the sister of Emmett, the big one with all the muscles, and Edward. Rosalie, Jasper and Emmett are all seniors, and Edward and Alice are juniors." They all had strange, unpopular names. I suddenly remembered that Stinky-breath Girl was named Jessica, a perfectly ordinary name.

"They're all, for lack of a better phrase, very good looking." Jessica giggled again. God, her breathe smelled foul.

"Yes! And they're smart. Every one of them has a perfect 4.0. Apparently they were homeschooled before they moved here two years ago, down from somewhere in Alaska. But they're all together though. Jasper and Alice and Emmett and Rosalie have been together for as long as they've lived here, maybe longer. And they all _live_ together." I hadn't known her for very long, but I could see that Jessica was one of those overly curious people who always wanted to know everybody's business. I decided to try and use that to my advantage.

"What about Edward? Is he with anyone?" I asked, glancing over at the Cullen-Hale table, only to swiftly look away again. Edward had looked up as I said his name, like I had been speaking directly to him. His dark eyes held a kind of unmet expectation. I looked away swiftly, although not as fast as him. As I looked away, someone at the table snorted in contempt.

"Don't even think about." Interrupted the girl, I think her name was Laura or Lisa or something, sitting on the other side of Jessica. "Edward Cullen doesn't date. Apparently none of the girls here are good looking enough for him." I detected a serious case of sour grapes. I chuckled, taking another bite of my homemade wholegrain bread chicken sandwich.

"What's so funny?" She demanded, her dull grey eyes narrowing to slits. I chuckled again, swallowing the final bite of my sandwich.

"It's nothing really. I was just wondering when he turned you down." All of a sudden the remaining five people at the table starting spitting out their drinks and choking on their food, like I had just broken a serious taboo. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the head of Edward Cullen snap around quickly to look directly at my current table. His eyes were frustrated, although I couldn't understand why.

"What makes you think he turned me down?" She snapped, her eyes, if it was possible, narrowing further. "What if _I_ turned _him_ down?" It was my turn to snort. I choked down the sudden flow of hysterical laughter that threatened to spill out.

"Oh, please!" I sniggered, putting my now empty lunchbox back into my bag. "They all have 4.0's! For arguments sake I'm going to assume that means they're intelligent and if they are as smart as Jessica claims, Edward isn't going to want to go out with someone who only cares about calorie counting and what her face looks like to other people, who probably couldn't care less anyway!" I cried, pointing to the sparse salad and bottle of cheap spring water on Lauren's (I'm pretty sure that's her name) plastic lunch tray. "Maybe he wants a relationship with substance, you know, with someone he has something in common with. It's not any of your business what type of girls Edward Cullen likes, even if he did reject you, so just keep your surgically reworked nose out of other people's lives and put it back into the pages of Teen People where it belongs." Lauren was practically snarling at me she was so pissed, so I picked up my camera and snapped a photo of her.

Almost before she could blink I had pulled the picture from the camera to develop, smiled an impish grin and headed off to class without a word, swinging my bag onto my back as I went. I peeked back behind me as the door swung closed only to see all the Cullens – Alice had managed to somehow come back into the cafeteria unnoticed, standing behind Jasper with her hand on his broad right shoulder, – and the Hales, not to mention over half the lunch room, staring at me with their mouths hanging open. Alice Cullen was the only one with her mouth closed. Her face was blank, expressionless, though something in her eyes told me she knew more than she was letting on.

The Cullens and Hales were obviously outsiders. Jessica had mentioned that they used to live in Alaska, and had moved to Forks two years previous. Their appearances hadn't seemed to earn them any acceptance, although I couldn't imagine doors that wouldn't open for that degree of beauty. It was hard to decide who was the most striking, to be honest, although it was definitely a toss-up between the golden-haired Rosalie and the bronze-haired Edward.

I didn't enter my biology class room until after the final bell, having spent the remainder of lunch reading on the grass, since the rain had taken a small break. When I arrived, nearly all the desks were full. I walked swiftly to my teacher's desk to get my slip signed.

"Isabella Swan! We've been expecting you." He proclaimed, signing my paper, "Why don't you take the empty seat next to...has anyone seen Edward Cullen?"

"I think he had to go home. Some sort of family issue." A girl with braces and a bad perm sitting in the front row said, raising her hand.

"Thank you for clearing that up, Wendy. Okay, so since he's not here, you can just take his desk for now." He gestured to an empty desk half way down the room. I thanked him quietly and hurried to my seat. I don't remember much about the lesson. I was too busy worrying what could be wrong with Edward Cullen. But that's silly, right? I mean, it was my first day, I had never even spoken to the guy and already I had vehemently defended his honour for no particular reason, potentially making myself a few nasty enemies, and now I was worrying about his _family issues?_! This town was making me lose my mind!

As I was packing up my bag after class, a cute, baby-faced boy with blonde hair and blue eyes came up to me, his face expectant.

"Hi, you must be Isabella!" He held out his hand to shake, but I just raised my eyebrow at him until he dropped it awkwardly back to his side. "I'm Mike Newton."

"Nice to meet you there, Mike. And I prefer Bella, if you don't mind." I said, my voice dripping with sour, fake enthusiasm that he didn't seem to pick up in the least. I took the opportunity to take a picture while he had his guard down. The flash, startled him, and he just stood there blinking for a few seconds. I rolled my eyes, putting the newly developed photo into the tin with the many others I had taken that day and stuffing it into the bag. I decided to break the moment by asking a question I already knew the answer to.

"Hey, do you know where the gym is?" Mike shook of his shock, his eyes lighting up like Christmas tree lights, or as if he had won the lotto or something.

"Sure, that's my next class! I'll take you there myself!" Without even waiting for my reply, he turned and walked straight out of the room.

"Okay." I muttered to myself, seeing no other option but to follow him out of the room.

As we walked towards the gym, Mike babbling on about something irrelevant, I saw out of the corner of my eye, Alice Cullen talking to Emmett, Rosalie and Jasper, with whom she was casually holding hands. Her lips were moving so quickly they were almost blurred, and it quickly came to my attention that Edward was missing. That caught my interest, and I unconsciously sucked in a large, freezing cold, unbearably painful breath. Almost instantly, I could feel the burning flare up like a live flame in my chest, an agonizing blaze that began to grow at an alarming rate. I began to cough hoarsely. Jasper turned his head, locking vision with me for a split second, his dark eyes filled with concern and shock, and I could feel the burn in my chest grow stronger, and begin to constrict my lungs. I realised it wasn't inquisitiveness causing this feeling. Something was going very, very wrong. I put my hand to my chest, gasping for air, clawing at my skin.

"-told me the Mystery Meat had pig hoof in it so try to avoid that - whoa, Bella, are you alright?" I had grabbed Mike's shoulder to keep myself from falling over as I stumbled forward onto my knees. My head was swimming from the lack of oxygen.

"Can't...breathe...chest...burns...." I gasped, struggling for even a little sliver of air. My ears began to ring, and I could hear footsteps running towards us, though they sounded far off in the distance.

"Mike, what's happening?" A tinkling soprano voice, which I assumed belonged to Alice Cullen, which sounded muffled and echoic, was laced with evident concern. I began to cough in between gasps, trying to force the air back into my lungs. I was on my knees now, my elbows to the ground. The murmur of worried voices began to hum, and I guessed a crowd had begun to form.

"I don't know, I was telling her about cafeteria food, and out of nowhere she started coughing and then she says she can't breathe and that her chest burns."

"We need to get her to the hospital, now." I could see black begin to creep in around the edges of my vision, and I knew I was passing out. My heart was pounding and my chest was an inferno. The last thing I heard was Alice telling someone, to call an ambulance, and that I was going to be okay, before everything went black.

**There's the second chapter! I'll try and add chapter 3 as soon as possible. And guys, please review or how am I supposed to know how many people are reading it or if my work needs improvement? So go on, make my day and press the pretty green button!**


	3. What the?

**I'm sooo sorry this has taken so long, but I've had a serious lack of inspiration lately. So to make up for it, I made you guys a long chapter. Hope you like it.**

**Disclaimer: Do not own.**

**(BPOV)**

I awoke feeling like someone had just hit me over the head with a cartoon mallet and simultaneously stuck a knife in my chest. Everything was sore and groggy. I could hear a sharp, regular beeping in the background, which I recognised as the sound of a heart monitor. I began to register the feel of the flat hospital pillows, the stiff sheets, the faint, lingering smell of antiseptic and the uncomfortable feel of needles poking into my skin, briefly wondering why on Earth I was in a hospital of all places, when I abruptly remembered what had happened at school.

"Finally, you're awake." My eyes, which had been closed up to this point, snapped open at the sound of the startlingly familiar soprano voice of Alice Cullen. I turned my head towards her, confused. There she was sitting on the plastic chair, smiling at me. My camera was on the table next to my bed.

"Alice Cullen? What are you doing here?" My voice was weak and scratchy, as it usually was when I had been over sleeping. I swallowed, trying to wet my throat.

"Watching over you." She said, smiling kindly, her pretty voice filled with unspoken compassion. Her eyes held the same knowing look, the one I had seen across the lunchroom. "I didn't think it was right for you to wake up alone, although you really haven't been sleeping that long. Only a few hours, at most."

"What happened to me?" I asked, sitting up slowly. I reached over and picked up my beloved camera, slinging it around my neck. I was still wearing my clothes from the first day of school. "I remember...I was coughing, then my chest started to hurt and I couldn't breathe..."

"I think maybe I should be the one to explain that." I looked towards the voice at the door as one of the most handsome men I had ever seen strode confidently into the room. He looked like a movie star, dressed conservatively in a powder blue collared shirt, matching silk tie, black slacks and a pristine white lab coat. He was chalky pale with kind, golden eyes surrounded by dark bruises and golden blonde hair swept back from his forehead, as if he ran his finger through it a lot. Strangely enough, the first thing that ran through my mind when I saw him was the Aerosmith song _Dude (Looks like a Lady)_.  
I realised a bit slowly that this must be the famous Doctor Carlisle Cullen.

He stopped at the foot of my bed, and I snapped a picture. The Doctor didn't seem all that fazed, though he did raise a questioning eyebrow at me.

"I was capturing the moment." I said in response, pulling out the picture.

"Hello Carlisle." Alice chirped, showing no sign of surprise at his sudden entrance or my camera flash at all. She didn't even look behind her to acknowledge him.

"Alice. How did you manage to get in here without me knowing?" he chastised light-heartedly, like he didn't expect any different. Alice shrugged her tiny shoulders.

"I have my ways." She grinned cheekily.

"Would someone please care to explain what in the hell landed me here??" I grumbled, interrupting their brief banter.

"Ah, yes. Well, Miss Swan-"

"Call me Bella." I interrupted again. I tended to do that when I was annoyed.

"Alright then, Bella it is. Lovely accent by the way. Australian, isn't it?"

"Yes. Are you trying to change the subject?" He chuckled.

"It seems so. Well, to get straight to the point it seems you suffered a rather severe and sudden asthma attack." I could feel the confusion on my face.

"But I don't have asthma. I mean, a couple months before I moved I came down with Bronchitis, but I was out of hospital within two weeks." Alice placed her small hand gently on my shoulder.

"Sometimes, Bella, asthma can be induced through sicknesses _like_ Bronchitis." Her eyes were apologetic, her voice soft and comforting.

"Did you ever experience any wheezing or shortness of breath after you recovered?" Dr Cullen asked; his pen poised above his clipboard.

"Not really. I tended to avoid doing too much physical activity for fear that I would trip and break a limb." Dr Cullen and Alice chuckled, their combined laughter like music.

"Yes, well I'm afraid that's how it's going to have to stay from now on Bella. Due to the apparent severity of your condition, I'm sorry to say that most forms of strenuous physical activity are now near impossible." I nodded.

"I can live with that." I said, switching my gaze between Alice and Dr. Cullen and nodding my head. Sport out, books in. Yay!

A timid knock on the door pulled me from my thoughts. I looked over to see Charlie angled half in and out the door, relief on his face. My answer was, once again, to put my camera to my eye and push the button, startling him.

"Still with the annoying camera?" He grimaced, coming fully into the room. He was still wearing his police uniform, complete with gun belt, minus said gun, and jacket.

"Did we just skip the part where people say hello to each other?" I replied, removing the photo from the camera.

"Hello Bella." Charlie sighed, smiling.

"Chief Swan. Good to see you." Dr Cullen greeted my father with a respectful nod of his head. Alice stood up to let Charlie take a seat.

"Evening Dr. Cullen. Why, thank you Alice." Alice smiled, shrugging nonchalantly.

"It's no big deal, Sir. I was just about to step out to find my siblings. I'm sure they're wondering where I am. It was nice to meet you Bella, although I do wish it was under better circumstances." She gave me a friendly smile, walking gracefully out of the room, reminiscent of a model on a catwalk. I felt a sharp twang of jealousy.

"Well, doc, what's the verdict?" Charlie asked, looking at Dr. Cullen. "Is Bella ready to go home?" I took another photo. They ignored me.

"Well, I don't see why not. As long as she keeps replenishing her medication and doesn't do any demanding exercise, she should be fine." He handed me a slip of paper with my prescription on it, "The Pharmacy is on the ground level. Give that to Helen behind the counter and she'll give you what you need. Now, if you'll kindly excuse me I have patients to attend to." He smiled blindingly and left.

Soon after, having sat through a nurse removing all my needles, Charlie and I were riding the elevator down to the ground floor in silence, my photos in the pocket of my jeans. Silences with Charlie were never uncomfortable because neither of us was what you would call verbose.

"I'm just gonna go call Renee, tell her you're all right. Things like this tend to move down the grapevine pretty fast." We both half smiled, half grimaced as we stepped out of the elevator. Both of us knew full well what Renee was like when she was worried.

"Cool, well I'll just head over to the Pharmacy and pick up my puffer. Meet you out there." I replied, heading in the direction the signs pointed.

I rounded a corner near the gift shop, only to spot the unmistakable face of Alice Cullen talking her father, and a tall head of bronze hair that I shouldn't have been able to recognize so easily.

Edward was here.

As I walked closer, the air conditioner blowing my ponytail around my head, I saw Edward's back stiffening and their conversation came to a halt. He turned slowly to look at me, and what I saw scared the living daylights out of me. His eyes were a deep, hard black as he glared hatefully at me, as if he were Sasuke Uchiha coming face to face with his brother Itachi, or The Doctor encountering the Daleks for the umpteenth time, even though they were supposed to be dead. I gasped softly, walking faster, and I heard a low angry rumble emanate from his chest. Almost like a growl. I saw Alice out of the corner of my eye, pushing her brother toward the door. Tears stung my eyes. Did he really hate me? Was it what I said at lunch? It had to be, I hadn't seen him any other time.

I reached the pharmacy and handed the paper in my hands to the woman behind the counter. Her name badge read Helen, so I assumed she was the right person. I was fighting back traitor tears. What the hell was his problem??

Helen handed me my reliever and preventer puffers in a paper bag with some refill cartridges, explaining that I had to take the preventer everyday and that the reliever was for when I had an attack. I thanked her stiffly and left. The Cullen's weren't in the hallway again.

Charlie was waiting for me by the cruiser.

"Hey, how'd it go?" He asked.

"Fine, I guess." I replied heading straight for what I thought was the passenger side of the car. Turns out I forgot, when I opened the front left door, that since this was America and not Australia it was the _driver's side_. I could hear Charlie snickering.

"Laugh it up, man. Who just got diagnosed with asthma?" I snapped, slamming the cruiser door.

"Asthma doesn't affect your memory, Bells." He retorted, strolling over to reopen the door and slide in behind the steering wheel.

"Yeah, yeah, that's what they all say." I grumbled, walking around to the correct side of the car. My school bag was on the seat when I opened the door, so I moved it carefully onto the floor between my legs. Charlie chuckled, starting the car.

"You're things arrived today." He said about halfway through the trip home. The radio in this town was atrocious. I wanted _Hamish and Andy_.

"Oh, good! I'll start unpacking when we get home." I replied, relieved to have all my stuff i.e. books, my manga collection, all my anime and DVDs, my music etc. I already had most of my clothes and my laptop.

Soon Charlie was pulling into the driveway of the house. The rain had started up, pelting the roof and forcing us to make a mad dash for the door. Somehow I still managed to get soaked.

When Charlie finally managed to unlock the door (why he has ten keys on his chain I'll never know), we hurried inside out of the cold, taking our shoes of at the door. I half-jogged to the kitchen, opening the fridge and grabbing some leftover chicken to snack on. The clock in the kitchen said it was 4:30pm. I really hadn't been out that long at the hospital. Maybe an hour at least.

"A'm goin' to mah woom." I said around my mouthful.

"Bella, chew and swallow." Charlie grimaced, hanging his jacket on the hook next to the front door.

"Sowwy." I mumbled, covering my mouth with my hand. Charlie rolled his eyes and I giggled, swallowing on my way up the stairs.

Charlie's house was more like a cottage. It had two bedrooms, one tiny communal bathroom and a small living space dominated by the second hand flat-screen he had ordered off eBay about a year back. The kitchen was even smaller. His dishwasher was yours truly. Oh, joy. The dining room consisted of a small, circular wooden table with about four mismatched chairs.

As I entered my room, I stubbed my sock-clad toe on the corner of a box. Now you might think with all my tripping and falling, that I had a high tolerance for pain. Err...not so much. I couldn't seem to take pain very well at all.

I limped over to my old desk and, placing my bag there and taking my camera from around my neck, got out my scissors to cut the tape on the boxes. There was one in the middle of my room with big black letters on the top saying '**OPEN ME FIRST**!' It contained my record player, sub-woofer, speakers and all my vinyls. Yes, I listen to vinyl.

I spent the rest of the afternoon unpacking all of the boxes while Charlie watched gridiron on the TV. I missed AFL.

I put all my normal DVDs and anime box sets, vinyls, mangas and books into the book case I had requested from Charlie. He'd had it in the living room, but all that was in there was a few fishing and sport magazines, a very thin Forks phone book and some road maps. He now kept them in his own bedroom. I put up my Dr Who calendar and the Inuyasha wall scroll I got at the Royal Show in Perth on the walls, and put all my clothes and shoes into my tiny wardrobe. My photo tin was stashed next to the Toshiba laptop Phil bought me. By the time I was finished, it was seven at night.

Charlie and I ordered pizza for dinner and watched _Monty Python's The Meaning of Life_. I love that movie. I think I freaked out the delivery boy with my overtly Australian mannerisms. I was only messing with him, but it was still fun.

"I'm really tired, dad. I think I'm gonna go to bed, eh." I said after the movie had finished.

"Sure thing, Bells. Sleep well." He replied, taking another bite of his fourth slice of pizza. What can I say, I had six.

"Love you. 'Night." I called, walking back up the stairs. I took a quick shower and brushed my teeth, dressing in some long PJ pants and a brown AC/DC t-shirt. I crawled into my double bed, pulling the unfamiliar sheets around me. The rain had mercifully taken a break, so I could maybe get some sleep.

As, I drifted into dream land, my mind began flashing the image of Edward Cullen's angry face at me. I vaguely wondered what the eff his problem was, before slipping into peaceful oblivion.

**There you go guys. I'll get onto chapter 4 as soon as I can. Hopefully my muse won't leave me again. So if you liked, hated it, whatever, please review so I know what you think. Constructive criticism is welcome! **


	4. Confusion and Queen

**Ta-daa, chapter 4! Forward ho, faithful readers!**

**Disclaimer: No owns. Makes me cry ;-;**

**(BPOV)**

I was dreading the second day of school. Not only would people stare because I was new, but now that I had succeeded in fainting and going to hospital on the first day, I would be even more of a spectacle.

I did my morning routine, shower, dressed, and ate. I dressed in blue jeans and a long sleeved black shirt and left for school.

When I arrived, I was one of the few people still in the car park. As I walked around the back of my car, Mike jumped out of nowhere, giving me a fright.

"Hey, Bella!" he chirped.

"Fuckin' Oath! Don't scare me like that, Mike!" I replied, walking around him. This guy was already on my nerves. He didn't seem fazed. Although, there was a flash of confusion on his face when I busted out my Aussie slang. He shook it off and followed me into English like an effing Golden Retriever!

Speaking of English, when I stepped inside, all the kids turned and stared at me. I took a picture of them with my camera. They continued to stare.

"You right there?" I asked, moving to my desk. My off-handed comment seemed to put them back in their places. Everyone, that is except for Mike. He followed me to my desk, seating himself on the table top.

See, I've always had a problem with people being too close, proximity wise, to me, and Mike at that moment was far too close.

"Get off the desk, Mike." I told him, poking him with my ruler. He seemed confused.

"Why?" he asked, still sitting on the table.

"Because I can't have anyone be closer than 30cm to me and my ruler is telling me that you are in fact, too close. So I'd appreciate it if you'd move." My tone was annoyed and slightly sarcastic. I wanted him away from me.

The bugger shrugged, hopping off the table. Mercifully, the bell went as his feet touched the floor, Mr Mason calling the class to order.

After class, having spent the whole time ignoring the pieces of rolled up paper Mike kept throwing at me and the evil stares from who I could only guess was Lauren or Jessica boring into the back of my skull, as I was gathering my books from my locker, someone tapped me on the shoulder.

"Mike, if that's you, I'm gonna hit you with a book." I sighed. A familiar tinkling laugh rang behind me, and I turned to see the tiny, perfect figure of Alice Cullen standing before me. I instantly felt my face flush. Did I just call her Mike and threaten her with book-bashings? Ugh. This day was gonna turn out _great._

"Hey Alice. Sorry for threatening you. I, uh, thought you were Mike." I admitted sheepishly. She giggled again, looking up at me with sparking golden eyes. The sound was like silver bells.

"It's fine Bella. Mike can be a bit clingy sometimes." She said, smiling. I wondered vaguely how she kept her spiky hair from flopping. I barked a nervous laugh, feeling extremely self-conscious.

"Yes, I think clingy is an understatement." Alice laughed again. Wow, when did I suddenly get so funny?

"Anyway Bella," she said when the laughing had stopped. "I just came over to say thank you for what you did yesterday. No one has ever stood up to Lauren Mallory, and for you to do that for my brother when you don't even know him, was, well, in my opinion it was pretty cool." I was flabbergasted.

"You're welcome Alice." She smiled, turning on her heel with no effort at all, just as the bell rang.

I walked to my next class silently, lost in my thoughts. Thankfully, Mike wasn't in my next few classes, though I did endure the usual curious stares and hateful glares from people who'd only talked to me for five minutes i.e. Jessica and Lauren, while occasionally taking a random photo.

When the bell rang for lunch, I felt a strange fluttering in my stomach. Where would I sit today? The Hater Brigade had obviously rejected me and I didn't have any other real friends. I decided to sit outside again, since the rain had briefly let up.

As I sat under a large pine tree eating a homemade lunch, my jacket under my butt and my iPod blasting Green Day in my ears, I began to wonder what had made Edward so damn angry. Alice seemed to be okay, but I stood up for him when no one else would. Didn't that mean anything? Obviously not, since he seemed to hate me.

I faintly heard the bell sound through the noise in my ears. Packing up my lunch and my iPod, I cleaned the wet grass from my jacket, pulled it on under my backpack; my camera safely stowed away inside and headed for Biology. I knew Edward couldn't avoid me there, since the only empty desk was right next to me. Hopefully I would be able to find out what I had done to offend him so much. I shuddered slightly, thinking about having to deal with Mike for another two hours. Ugh.

As I walked through the door, hanging my jacket up on a peg next to everyone else's, I did a quick scan of the classroom. I grimaced at Mike when he waved at me, which he probably took as a smile from the giant, self-satisfied grin on his face. I moved my eyes quickly away before he could interpret something that wasn't there.

Edward wasn't here yet. No biggie, we still had five minutes before class started and from the things I'd heard about the Cullens, they weren't ones to be late. So I sat down at the table and waited, perhaps a bit too eagerly, for him to arrive.

And waited.

And waited.

And waited.

After twenty minutes, I resigned myself to that fact that he wasn't coming to class, my heart sinking into my shoes. What had I done to make him ditch school?

When the bell rang for the final hour of the day, I gathered my things slowly. Mike came to stand at my side, blabbering on about some stupid beach trip he was trying to plan. Bleh, whatever.

I walked to PE with him yammering in my ear. As we entered the Gym, Mike wandered off to the change room and I saw Coach Clapp flipping through some papers, standing near the entrance to his office. Pulling my medical certificate and my new puffer out of my pocket, I rushed over and explained my current asthma situation. He took the certificate and told me to take a seat on the bleachers.

Half way across the Basketball courts, I heard Mike calling me.

"Bella, where are you going?" I turned, grinning, and flashed him my puffer.

"It's my Get-Out-Of-Phys-Ed Free Card, mate!" I replied climbing the steps, not waiting for a response, though I did hear a moan of annoyance. I sat on the third row, not to high to take a photo and not to low as to get stepped on. Action shots were my forte, though the flash did make a few people trip over or crash into someone.

It was a relief to get home. My Playstation 2 and all my games had arrived, sent a little later because Renee thought I would concentrate on my first day better without video games. I got my homework out of the way and ordered some Chinese food for dinner, spending the time before Charlie got home playing Kingdome Hearts II, trying to distract myself from spiralling into a pile of guilt over Edward not being at school. The fact that I couldn't have done anything to make him hate me since we had never spoken was beside the point. Even so, beating the crap out of Heartless and Nobodies did make me feel a little better.

When Charlie came home, I reheated some of the Chinese food and grabbed a fizzy drink and a beer out of the fridge while he set up a movie for us to watch. I could see a routine in the making.

"You know, we should probably eat something other than take-away's sometime." I commented when we finished. Charlie grunted a laugh, too full to properly respond. I bid him goodnight and headed for bed, one again thinking of Edward before I slept.

The next day, Edward wasn't at school. In fact he wasn't there for over a week. Occasionally I would see Alice in the halls or at lunch and she would smile and wave at me. It made me feel as though Edward being away really wasn't my fault. I still felt guilty. As the days went by, I seemed to be stared at by less and less people. The effect of a shiny new student was wearing off. Only Mike still followed me around, though I did see the occasional jealous glare from Eric directed his way.

When I entered the cafeteria that Monday on the second week of school, I almost walked straight back out.

Edward was back.

Before I could bolt, Alice caught my eye and beckoned me over. Oh. _Frick_. What was I supposed to do? Ignore the only real chance at a friend I had in this place, or walk over and face Edward for the first time since the hospital? I decided to go against my better judgement and go with the latter. I wasn't in any position to give up friends.

I walked clumsily to the other side of the lunch room, feeling like a complete and utter moron as every person's eyes followed my movement.

"Hey, Bella," Alice smiled at me, patting the empty seat next to her, "Why don't you sit with us today?"

I tried to sit as gracefully as possible, but I tripped over my shoelaces and sort of flopped. I could hear someone trying to repress laughter. It sounded like a bear was choking. I sat up, my face burning, tugging at the hem of my black Mercury Phoenix Trust, the AIDS foundation founded by Freddie Mercury, t-shirt.

"Bella, I'd like you to meet my family," Alice gestured around the table, "this is Rosalie," the blonde goddess gave me what could be interpreted as a glare and went back inspecting her perfect nails, "Emmett," he smiled at me, his cheeks dimpling,

"It's nice to meet you Bella." He said politely. I smiled nervously back, my gaze fixed on the table.

"This is my boyfriend Jasper," she put her hand on Jasper's arm, as he returned my tentative smile, "and this is Edward."

I glanced up, expecting to see Edward glaring at me like he had at the hospital, but his face held only frustrated curiosity. I was struck by the colour of his eyes. They were the same as Alice's, a deep, molten topaz that seemed to burn right into my soul. I couldn't look away. Someone cleared their throat, and Edward looked away.

"So, Bella, you're from Australia?" I heard Emmett ask. I stopped playing with my shirt and looked up.

"Yeah. I was born here in Forks but my mum, Renee, and I have lived there since I was about six months old." I replied.

"Did you live in Sydney or Melbourne?" Alice asked leaning her elbows on the table. Of course they would ask that.

"Actually, I lived in Perth, in Western Australia. The biggest state." I was proud of living in the west. In my opinion, it was _so _much better than being a stuck up brat from the eastern states. The Cullen's laughed. I decided to capture the moment and took a picture of their smiling faces, blushing.

I took a bite of my sandwich, chewing quietly. This was strange. The Cullen's started a playful banter, while Edward sat across from me, suddenly tense and frowning. I felt the guilt swirl in my gut. Thankfully, the bell rang not too long after, cutting the thick tension. I packed up my lunch, looking up to say goodbye to the Cullens. Edward was already halfway through the cafeteria. Waving tentatively at the other Cullens, I walked after him.

Edward wasn't there when I arrived at class, Mike tailing me _again_. God, that boy needs a hobby.

I sat at the desk quietly, placing my bag on the floor. After about five minutes, I heard the chair pull out next to me.

"Hello." I peeked out of the corner of my eye. It was Edward.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" I replied roughly, pushing my hair behind my ear.

"Excuse me?" he looked shocked, as if I'd said the complete opposite of what he'd expected.

"You heard me. I defended you last week, and then after I suffer my first asthma attack you look at me like I'm some kind of demon spawn. Now you want to be civil?" I was being bratty and petty, but this guy had slowly worked his way onto my List, and he was due to be knocked down a few pegs.

I saw the anger flare in his eyes, then it settled, and he smiled. "I'm sorry for the way I acted. It was unkind of me to do so. Forgive me?" I huffed, blowing my hair from my eyes.

"Fine, you're forgiven." I replied curtly. Stupid, handsome, rude stranger.

For the next ten minutes, we sat in an awkward, uncomfortable silence. It seemed both of us were too stubborn to break it. I looked him up and down, and something struck me.

"Are you gay?" He looked utterly shocked, "What? Come, on no straight guy ever dresses that well! You do dress yourself right, or does someone have to help you with that?" Edwards's eyes were wide and manic.

"I was straight the last time I checked and yes I do dress myself!" I raised my eyebrow in disbelief, "Alice insists on buying everyone's clothes. If I had my way I'd wear jeans and band t-shirts every day." He looked at my shirt, "Like that for example."

I was stunned. None of the boys in Australia could be told about the band Queen without laughing and making dirty jokes. They all liked rap and hip-hop. "You like Queen?" I asked, shell shocked.

"Like? I love them. Freddie Mercury is one of my favourite performers."

"Me too!" I exclaimed, smiling. Edward crooked smile almost stopped my heart. "What's your favourite song? Please don't say Bohemian Rhapsody, everybody says that." He laughed. I was entranced by the sound of it.

"Actually my favourite song is _I Want it All_."

"Mine too! Well, after _Don't Stop Me Now_, of course." How did I go from being angry at this guy to gushing over my favourite band with him?

"Of course." He replied, smiling. Mr Banner called the class to order after that. After a few minutes, I looked out of the corner of my eye. Edward's hand was clenched into a fist, the tendons sticking out against his bone white skin.

When the bell went, Edward was gone before I could even rise from my seat.

Once again I spent gym on the bleachers, watching the cretins run back and forth like headless chickens. Asthma seemed to have its pluses.

When I entered the parking lot, I saw the Cullen's all climbing into the Volvo. Edward stood at the door and glanced at me, his eyes frustrated and curious again. He quickly climbed into the car and before I could blink, they were speeding out of the parking lot, leaving me more confused than ever.

**Finished! Chapter 5 will be up as soon as I can. Please review, it makes me happy and gives me Muse-power!**


	5. Chemistry in Biology

**There's no excuse for this to have taken me so long. I apologise for making everyone late, but I had exams last week and it seems my muse has become very picky of late. So please, enjoy the chapter! And gratzi to all my reviewers and subscribers, you guys make me feel so loved! *hugs everyone***

**Disclaimer: Do not own.**

**EDIT 3/12/09: I've made a major modification in this chapter, because one plot idea just wasn't working for me at all. I hope you guys like the new one, it was, again, just a matter of plotting that needed to be changed.**

**(BPOV)**

When I awoke in the morning, there was something different about the light. I looked out my bedroom window, only to groan in contempt. It had snowed overnight. The only time I had ever seen snow was on a holiday in New Zealand, which ended with me having the mother of all colds. Let me just say, the plane ride home had been a nightmare. Luckily it was only a light dusting, so I didn't have to worry about my pants getting soaked.

I pulled on a large winter jacket Renee had bought me before I left Australia and headed out the door. I had to be extra careful; falling over in my own driveway was not going to go down well, especially if I had a panic attack and went into an asthma-induced coma.

As I arrived at school, I saw the other kids running around flinging what little snow they could find at each other. Yuck. I made a mental note to carry a folder with me and put my camera in its case for protection.

I took a quick look around, checking for Mike. Seeing him absent, I gathered my stuff and hurried as fast as I could, without tripping or signalling my asthma, to English. I groaned to myself as I entered the room. Frick, he was already there! Reluctantly I went to sit in the desk behind him, his enthusiastic waving hard to ignore.

Mike turned in his seat, and I tuned out his yabbering, nodding my head at regular intervals for effect. My mind wandered to what the Cullen's were doing. Were they still at home or already in class? How long did it take for Alice and Rosalie to get ready, how Edward might look like in the-

"Bella, are you listening?" Mike's jolted me back into reality before my fantasy could finish. I literally jumped a few centimetres in my seat.

"What? Sorry Mike, my mind was somewhere else." I apologised, tempted to slip back into my day dream. Sure I disliked Edward a lot for the way he'd been treating me, but that didn't mean I couldn't fantasise about his tall, muscular, gorgeously pale-

"Bella!!"

"What?!" I practically screamed at Mike as reality crashed onto me again. Once was fine, twice was pushing it.

"Do you or do you not want to head out to La Push with us this weekend?" he asked, exasperated. I assumed 'us' meant him and the people he hung out with, like Angela, Jessica and Lauren. Angela was fine, she was a nice girl from the brief conversation I'd had with her a few times, but Lauren and Jessica were another story. Though, I really didn't see a choice since Charlie was always eager for me to go somewhere other than inside my head.

"Yeah, sure, fine, whatever," I replied, exasperated beyond all reason. Damn that stupid Edward Cullen. And damn Mike for interrupting my day dream!

As we left class, I felt a drop on my cheek. Mike groaned loudly. It had started raining, washing away all the snow.

"It's about time, too." I said, putting my camera in my bag.

"Don't you like snow, Bella?" Mike asked, collecting the running slush in his hand.

"We don't get it in Australia. Renee took me skiing in the Blue Mountains once, and I broke my leg and caught hypothermia. So the answer to that is no, Mike, no I don't like snow." I huffed. Mike shrugged, brushing off my scathing tone. Hmm...he would make a good verbal punching bag.

The rest of the day passed slowly. I took the occasional embarrassing photo, less enthusiastic as I had been at first. After all, there were only so many new people to photograph in a town this small. When lunch arrived, I didn't expect the Cullen's to invite me to sit with them again. That was probably a one-time deal, payment for defending Edward's honour or something. I had a meeting with the principle anyway, so I wasn't too bothered. I think.

I arrived at the office just after the start of lunch. Mrs. Cope ushered me into Principal Simpson's office, telling me he would be in to see me in a minute. I took a picture of her while she was talking, and she left with a disapproving frown on her face while I grinned widely, adding the photo to my box.

Principal Simpson looked very much like Principal Goodvibes from The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy. He was average size, Caucasian, wearing a plain brown suit and sporting a gray comb-over and a big chin. I couldn't resist capturing the moment, it was just too good.

"Miss Swan, lovely, to meet you." He said, looking a little startled. There was a nasally, southern drawl to his voice. God, he even _sounded_ like Goodvibes! "Now, I understand you recently have been diagnosed with asthma?"

"Yes, sir," I replied politely, using the familiar prefix I used instead of the teacher's name.

"Well, Coach Clapp has spoken to me, and, in light of your participation record, he feels it would be better for you to move out of Physical Education." He folded his hands while the words sunk in.

"So I don't have to do PE anymore?" I asked, hope budding.

"No. We feel it would be best for you to move into a different class." I almost jumped out of my seat and started dancing. This was great! No more frigging PE!! "So, what am I going to do instead?" the principal rummaged around in a drawer for a bit, pulling out some sheets of paper,

"It seems you have the option of changing into Spanish, Music or Geography." He read off the page, glancing at me for an answer. It was a toughie. I liked learning new languages, put I'd have a disadvantage against the other kids. The world was interesting, but did I really want to know about places I'd never see?

"Music, please!" my reasoning had taken about half a second. I'd always wanted to be a musician, but living in the Australian 'burbs with no real artistic support anywhere didn't really help.

I suddenly had an idea.

"Sir?" I asked timidly, "Do you mind if I swap some more of my classes? I've been having some...difficulties with some of the other kids."

"What kinds of difficulties?" He asked.

"Well, some of the girls don't like me, and I'm afraid that if I stay in those classes, the situation will get out of hand," I explained, avoiding the mention of Jessica and Lauren's names.

"Very well, then. That's perfectly alright," Principal Simpson turned back to the computer and began clicking away, "What classes would you like to change?"

"Biology, and Trig." He nodded, fingers moving across the keyboard.

"Okay, that's fine. All I have to do is swap your current classes to fit, and we'll be done. Unfortunately there are no other placements available for Biology." I huffed. Typical Bella Bad Luck.

On the plus side, I now only had one class with the Bitch Face Sisters and The Try Hard Brigade. I could handle that.

After typing away at his computer for a little while, the printer began to whirr. Soon, I had my new timetable in hand and was practically jumping from my seat, my bad mood forgotten. This was going to be epic!

"Well, that's pretty much it, Miss Swan. I just have to notify your current teachers, and your new ones about the change. At the beginning of next week, head to your new classes and everything should be set." He dismissed me, and I practically bolted from the room. I fast-walked to the gym, the song _Music of the Night_ from _The Phantom of the Opera_ was running through my mind. Seriously, Gerard Butler owns my soul.

I reached the biology room just as the bell went. Edward was already in his seat, and the one next to him was the last empty chair. I smiled tightly as I sat down, setting my bag down on the floor and putting my books on the table. From the corner of my eye I could see Edward, and it seemed as if he were struggling with himself. Something gave, and he turned toward me.

"Hello, Bella." His crooked smile almost made me lose all discipline and drool.

"Uuuh...hey." I replied. Pfft, real eloquent, Bella.

"I wanted to apologise for the way I've been acting. I was out of line. You defended me, and I appreciate that greatly." Edward stared at me with sincere, wide eyes. Wait...something was different about him today. His bone white skin was slightly pinker and healthier looking, the circles under his eyes less noticeable than before; but there was something else.

"It's okay. I'm sorry for acting like a douche yesterday." Edward laughed. It was the most amazing sound I had ever heard, deep and masculine, but also soft and musical. His bronze hair was wet and dishevelled; probably from the rain and the snow.

"You weren't at lunch." He stated. I was a little surprised. Why did he care if I was at lunch?

"Um, no, I wasn't. I had to go to the office for something." I was being intentionally cryptic. No need to tell him something he probably wouldn't care about. "Plus I wanted away from the snow and rain." What the deuce? Why did I tell him that? I was mad at him for cryin' out loud! Still, there was something strangely disarming about Edward Cullen. I couldn't help but want to talk to him more.

"You don't like the cold?" he asked, frowning. I shook my head.

"Or the wet. Drives me boxy, it does." Again, Edward laughed. What was it about these Cullen people that made me seem so goddamn funny? Soon, the laughter died down, and he simply looked at me, smiling slightly.

"Forks must be a hard place for you to live then." His tone was subdued, kind. Understanding, even; all I could do was nod. "Why did you move here?" there was a startling amount of curiosity in Edward's voice. It seemed he really wanted to know about my boring life.

"My mother, Renee, got remarried." I admitted nonchalantly.

"And you don't like him." He stated again, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. I shook my head in disagreement.

"No, Phil's a great guy. A bit young, maybe, but a great guy all the same." Edward looked confused, so I decided to help him out a bit, "He plays AFL, Australian football, for a living and his job involves a lot of flying around for games. I saw what staying in Perth was doing to his relationship with my mother, so I decided it was best to give them some space."

"That was very kind of you. But I'm willing to bet your suffering more than you let people see." My eyes widened, and I averted them onto the desk, using my hair as a shield.

Mr Banner was instructing the class on our work; we simply had to fill in some, in my opinion, year 10 level work sheets. I knew all the answers, finishing quickly. Looking up, I realised that Edward was also finished, and once again staring at me.

"Would you take a picture? It lasts much longer." I snapped. He chuckled, and my eyebrow twitched, my mouth set into a frown, "does my discomfort amuse you?"

"I'm sorry, but," the laughter was gone, his voice soft and curious, "it seems there's more to you than meets the eye."

"And what exactly meets the eye?" I asked, a little but curious myself, "a whole lot of crazy?" Edward shook his head, still smiling that frustratingly gorgeous smile. It was still bugging me, that notion that something was different. Then it hit me.

"Did you get contacts?" I blurted out. He frowned, seeming a little taken a back.

"No," It had to be a lie. I very clearly remembered the flat black of his eyes on that first day, and now they were a strange, golden colour. Like honey, or topaz. I simply shrugged, noticing his hand was curled into a tight fist on his leg, the tendons sticking out on his bone white skin. I turned away, the moment ruined, hiding behind my hair once more. When the bell went, he left just as fast as the first day, leaving me, once again, confused and annoyed.

The next morning, I groaned again. The cold air had frozen all of the rain into ice, along the road and the driveway and the trees, pretty much anywhere. The drive to school was precarious, and I drove at half the speed I usually did.

As I left the warm truck cabin, I saw Edward Cullen staring at me from the other end of the parking lot. I had my iPod in my ears, so I could only hear the music. MCR pounded through my skull, the sound low to keep my ears from ringing later.

Something silver caught my eye as I made to leave. Bending down, I saw that Charlie had put snow chains on my tires. It must have been how I got to school so easily. Pulling my iPod from my ears, I was overcome by a flood of emotion. It was a subtle way of him showing he cared, without having to say it.

Suddenly, out of nowhere a high pitched screeching shot through the parking lot. I turned to see Tyler Crowley's van careening towards me, the tires locked and sliding along the ice at full speed towards the corner of my truck, which I just so happened to be standing in front of. Everything seemed to speed up, and as I tensed, waiting for the blow, something cold and hard hit me, throwing me to the side. I smacked my head on the bitumen, my vision going fuzzy. The scraping of metal against metal, and a pair of snow white hands connected to a very familiar male body, shoving the van away from me confused my hazy mind. He shouldn't have been able to do that...and how did he get here so fast? The sound of my name, surrounded by screaming and shouting was vague in my ears.

"Bella, Bella, stay with me, okay?" The voice of Edward dug through my stupor. "You hit your head; an ambulance is coming, but I need you to stay awake for me, okay?"

"O-okay..." I fought against the darkness at the edge of my vision, my head throbbing. I vaguely registered the sound of sirens and being lifted up by cold arms before being placed back down on what I assumed was a stretcher. I could see Tyler beside me, his face covered in cuts and lacerations, even a black eye, barely visible against his dark skin. Edward climbed into the ambulance and kneeled next to me, holding my hand.

He kept me conscious, asking me simple questions about things I knew, like my family and anime, which he seemed to know I loved. Eventually, it all became too much for my mind to handle,

"Ed-d-war-ward..." I stammered, slipping into oblivion, the sound of the sirens, the engine of the ambulance, and Edward calling my name the last thing I heard.

**Dun-dun-duuuuun! Ain't I a stinker? I promise you'll see more of the other Cullen's and Bella's human 'friends' in later chapters! So, pretty please review and tell me what you think! Much love for all who do!**


	6. Emotional Whiplash

**I've kept you waiting long enough, and now I give to you, my lovlies, chapter 6!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. Except an Emmett plushie. I own that :D**

**(BPOV)**

I remember waking with a splitting headache, and my vision was dark. I knew my eyes were closed, but they felt too heavy to open. I could hear the soft, familiar beep of the hospital equipment and the tapping of feet outside the room as my hearing slowly returned. I was in the hospital again. I remembered…the snow chains…Tyler's van screeching towards me…and then pain; I hit my head on the pavement. Edward…he'd pushed me out of the way of the van…his white hands forcing the vehicle away from me stuck out among the swirling images in my head. But how in the world had he done it?

I began to hear voices. Someone was coming into the room. I wanted to open my eyes, to turn my head and see, but my body wouldn't let me.

"She's still asleep." A soft, liltingly musical voice sighed. I would recognize that voice anywhere. That fact alone scared the crap out of me.

"Bella has a mildly severe concussion. She's lucky to be alive, the way her head hit the pavement. The medication wore off a few hours ago; all that's left to is wait until she wakes up on her own." Dr Cullen's voice was soothing and calm; professional but still emotional.

There was a brief pause, "Charlie is worried sick." Edward sighed again. Oh no, if Charlie was worried that means he would call Renee. And then she would make the unnecessary trip to America just to spend five minutes checking on me. I wanted to shudder, but my shoulders were paralysed.

I seemed to stay this way for ages. Charlie came in to see me; I heard him talking to Dr Cullen about whether or not I would wake up. I _was_ awake, just paralysed, it seemed. I could feel everything, I just couldn't move it.

What was strange about the whole situation, the entire time, Edward stayed at my side. Sometimes he just sat there, sometimes he would talk to me, apologizing for the way he had acted and telling me Renee and Charlie missed me. The slow beep of the heart monitor sounded in the background, drowned by the wonderfully soothing music of Edward Cullen's voice. Alice came in and forced him to leave, taking his place at my side. She was very cryptic about the reason, only mentioning that he was hungry and should go eat before something happened.

Something like what? Was he some kind of cannibal? An escaped mental patient from an unknown psych-ward half way across the country? A demon who survives by sucking the souls of the living? Hell, maybe a werewolf, or even a vampire! But that was impossible. Maybe she just meant that he would faint or become malnourished. Still, a nagging feeling in the back of my skull told me I had been on the right track.

------

As I slept, after spending a paralysed day listening to Alice tell me how everyone was worried about me, my dreams were filled with images of the crash; crunching metal, Tyler's bloody face in the ambulance, mixed with images of people tearing into the flesh of human limbs with their teeth and hands, and strange creatures that resembled Dementors sucking out the souls of the living. Free of paralysis, my body jolted awake. I flung myself up, screaming like a banshee. Nurses rushed into my dark room, their hands fluttering, unsure of what to do as my screams turned to violent sobs.

"Out of the way! Let me through!" I vaguely recognized the commanding voice of Dr Cullen as he pushed through the crowd of nurses, most only here out of curiosity rather than concern for my wellbeing. The ones who were doing their jobs sighed and left when he arrived, content that someone was going to do the right thing, but the rest lingered, looking for gossip fodder. Edward, who I noticed behind his father, growled low, glaring at the women. They scarpered after that.

I couldn't seem to stop crying, though this was nothing new. I usually had bad dreams when I stayed overnight in hospitals. There was just something about them that set my mind off.

Suddenly, I felt arms wrapping around my shoulders. I didn't care if it was someone I knew; I simply turned my head and cried into their shirt. The man whispered soothing words in my ear, the familiar voice making my heart jump erratically. Vaguely, I heard the sound of rustling paper; I assumed Dr Cullen was looking at the chart at the end of my bed.

After what seemed an eternity, my aching sobs quieted, turning to sniffles. Edward pulled back, seating himself in the chair next to my bed. I found myself missing his touch. This guy was going to give me whiplash.

"Thanks." I murmured, avoiding his gaze.

"Why were you crying?" he asked. His velvet voice was like music, soft and lilting.

"Nightmare; happens all the time." I stated, very aware that the doctor was at the end of my bed.

"Well, despite some obvious trauma, everything seems to be normal, Bella." He said, placing my chart at the end of the bed. He walked over to the side of my bed not occupied by his son and pulled out a little torch thing. "It seems you got lucky."

"Yeah, lucky Edward was there to save me," I replied, swinging my legs over the side of the bed.

He shone the torch in my eyes, probing his fingers along the place where my head had hit the concrete.

"My apologies," Dr Cullen said when I winced a little, "You must still be a little tender. Other than that you appear fine."

"Can I go home, then?" I asked eagerly. Hospitals freaked me out, which sounded a bit redundant, considering how much time I spent in them.

"I don't see why not. Just make sure to get some rest and take some Tylenol for any pain you may experience. I'll have one of the nurses call Chief Swan and tell him to come and get you." He explained. I nodded; disappointed to notice that Edward had left the room.

As I waited for the nurses to unhook me from the machines, I contemplated exactly what had happened. I had been standing halfway across the parking lot from Edward and yet he not only found a way to get to me within a split second of being crushed by Tyler Crowley's van, but also managed to push it out of the way before I became a smudge on the school asphalt. But...the van had to weigh at least a couple of tons, how in the world could he have moved it with his bare hands?? Maybe I was delusional, and everything was muddled thanks to a head injury. But even then, I would be dead if it was only in my head! Arrrgh! Circular, rhetorical conversations give me a headache!

Once I was fully dressed back in my clothes I had worn to school before the accident, I gathered my things and left the room. Charlie wasn't there yet, but Edward Cullen was, talking with his sister, Rosalie and Dr Cullen at the end of the hall. I stayed silent, but they noticed me anyway, looking over warily.

"Hey," I said. He looked at me with dark yellow, frustrated eyes, "can we talk?" With one last glance back at his family, he walks, more like stalks over to me, straight past and to a dark corner at the other end of the hall. I rolled my eyes, following.

"What do you want, Bella?" he asked, his tone brusque and clipped. So I would be dealing with the unfriendly Edward now, would I? Fine, two could play at that game.

"I want to know what the hell happened today." I replied, equally as hostile.

"What do you _think_ happened?" He asked, his tone questioning my sanity, "I was standing right next to you when the van crashed." I frowned.

"No you weren't. You were half way across the car park!" How _dare_ he question my sanity! I was edgy enough without this arrogant A-hole pushing me any further!

"Bella, if I was, as you say, half way across the car park, how do you suppose I got to you in time to push you out of the way?" Again with the condescending tone! He was treating me like a child who had had a bad dream or imagined something coming out her wardrobe!

"Don't you dare talk to me that way, you patronizing ass! I know what I saw!" I was mad now, and Edward was about to bear the brunt of my anger.

"And what exactly did you see?" I wanted to scream, to hit him as hard as my arms would allow, but I held it in, instead letting it all out in a rush of verbal diarrhoea.

"I was standing at my car, you were across the lot, and then Tyler's van comes screeching in, I'm about to be crushed, when I get pushed out of the way, so my head hits the ground, while I see _your_ hands pushing the van away and, and, and..." I was huffing and wheezing when I finished, so I pulled my puffer from my pocket and took a hit of the medication. Edward looked mad. And I mean really, _really_ mad.

"Is that what you think?" his voice was controlled, quiet. I nodded, putting my puffer away, "well nobody is going to believe you."

"Why would I tell anyone? And who would I tell in the first place, it's not like I have any friends." I reminded him.

"Can't you just thank me and get over it?" he demanded, huffing.

"Thank you." I said curtly, without an ounce of feeling behind it. Edward raised his eyebrow as we stared each other down.

"You're not going to let it go, are you?" He folded his arms, glaring at me.

"No." I had to concentrate hard not to lose all discipline and drool. It was like trying to stare down a fallen angel.

"Well then...I hope you enjoy disappointment." I was certain Edward was hiding something. You would have to be obtuse beyond all reason not to see it. Glaring fiercely, I stalked away from him, heading for the doors to the waiting room.

It seemed the whole school was waiting for me. Even Tyler, all covered in gauze, his right arm in a cast and sling and his right ankle in a brace was there. Charlie spotted me, running up to give me a hug.

"I'm fine now." I said, holding up my hands to stop him, "Dr Cullen said a little bed rest and some Tylenol and I'll be okay." The Dr had obviously talked to Charlie, because all he did was nod; instead of pester me about what was wrong. I ushered us out of the room just as Mike and Tyler, with Lauren and Jessica on their arms, began to converge on me. Angela threw me a kind glance and I smiled in return.

The car ride home was silent; I barely recognised that Charlie was there, so consumed was I by the mystery Edward presented to me. I ended up having to call Renee when I got home to convince her thirty times or more that I was fine. She even tried to convince me to come home, forgetting that home was empty because Phil was playing away for the next few months.

Mike called me at around eight o'clock, reminding me about his beach trip. He'd set a date for it, and I told him I'd make sure I was free that weekend. The weather was supposed to clear up by then for a short while, which was a relief. Sunshine would be a welcome change from the usual gray gloom, even if it was still only around 20 degrees.

Charlie and I had pizza for dinner and watched Scrubs, our favourite show. I knew Charlie was trying to make me as comfortable as possible, and I appreciated the gesture. He wasn't one for affection, was my father, and any sign, verbal or not, was a nice change.

I took some painkillers before bed, taking my time in the shower, languishing in the hot water and the strawberry smell of my shampoo. I dressed in my most comfortable pyjamas and settled down for a peaceful night of drug induced sleep.

That was the first night I dreamed of Edward Cullen.

**Chapter 7 is on it's way, don't fret my dears! I promise, it only gets better from here! Please review my children, it makes mummy happy!**

**--NOTICE--**

I have enabled anonymous reviews on all stories now, so even if you don't have a fanfiction acount you can review.


	7. Music in the Blood

**To all the readers who have stuck with me through the long gap, thank you so much for your support! And to all the new comers, thank you as well! You guys are what keep me inspired!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight**

Going to school had become awkward and tense. Edward and I only exchanged terse glances and clipped greetings. It seemed like the Cullens were the only friends I had, but with the way things were with Edward, I was once again on my own.

It didn't help that I dreamed of him every single night, waking with a feeling that I wasn't alone, only to miserably find I was. True he was a self-centred anal-retentive, but the guy had saved my life. I couldn't begrudge him that, no matter how hard I tried.

I hadn't told anyone about what had really happened that day. Tyler followed me around, begging for my forgiveness, promising he'd somehow make it up to me. I either ignored him or politely told him to shove it where the sun-don't-shine.

Lots of kids came up to me, amazed that I had survived. I insisted that in fact, Edward had saved me, but they all claimed not to have seen him until he was carrying me to the ambulance.

Sneaky mongrel.

I began the new week with renewed enthusiasm. I would be starting my new classes, something I was greatly looking forward too. I had spent the whole weekend with my camera and my iPod, wandering around the tiny down town area taking random candids of passing strangers.

Probably wasn't the best idea considering my asthma and the perpetual wet weather, but old habits die hard, as they say.

My troubles forgotten, my camera around my neck and my supplies filling my backpack, I practically skipped into the music room, once again having to rely on my trusty map to get me to class.

The school music room was directly connected to the back of the auditorium. It served as a theatre and a school hall at the same time. It wasn't huge, rather small for a theatre but, then again, Forks was a small school.

I knocked on the door gently, and instantly spotted the teacher, a large woman dressed like a bohemian with loose, brightly coloured fabrics and laden with beaded jewellery. My new timetable revealed her name to be Jenna Hugo.

"Oh, hello, you must be Bella!" She smiled, her voice covering me like a warm blanket. I instantly liked her, "I'm Miss Hugo, Forks' resident musical aficionado!" She finished with a flourish.

"Nice to meet you, Miss Hugo," My eyes searched the room, "Am I the first one here?"

"For now. We have only a small class, and the others aren't usually late. They should be here soon," I nodded and she smiled at me again.

As I placed my things down at an empty table, I heard the door swing open. I assumed the other students had arrived, but it didn't really hold immediate interest.

"Sorry we're late, Miss H," I froze at the tinkling soprano voice behind me. I resisted the urge to turn and gawk.

"That's quite alright, Alice. We have a new student with us, today," I cringed, the attention unwanted for many, many reasons. I turned, a smile on my face when my eyes landed on both Alice and, unexpectedly Angela standing by the door.

"Hey Bella!" Alice said, skipping over to my table. Angela followed behind, her face and her pretty, light blue eyes alight with happiness.

"I didn't know you were in this class," Angela mused aloud as she took her place at the table. She seemed slightly bewildered to be sitting with someone as radiant as Alice Cullen, but she didn't make it awkwardly obvious like I would have...uh, did.

"I got transferred in from gym, because of my asthma," I explained. Angela nodded in acknowledgment as she pulled some things out of her bag.

The rest of the class shuffled in to the art room slowly, their bodies sluggish on the cold Monday morning. I had always been an early riser, although in the right light, the black circles under my eyes became very prominent.

I glanced as slyly as I could over at Alice. The bruises that had been so dark under her eyes that first say were lighter, lavender. She turned her head and smiled brightly at me, squashing my attempt at skulduggery.

"Alright, people," Miss Hugo, announced to us once the class, all 15 students, was all assembled at the tables, "We're going to begin today with a little music history. Starting with the Romantic movement!" She pulled a whiteboard on wheels from a storeroom, uncapped a marker, and began chattering away as the students diligently took notes.

After half an hour of namedropping the great composers, Miss Hugo relieved us of our pencils and allowed us to turn on the radio and play around with the instruments. Angela gave a shy smile, pulled a clarinet out of a rectangular case by her chair, and retreated to a corner with her music book.

"So Bella," Alice started, taking me by the arm as she led us over to the baby grand piano in the corner of the room, "Do you play an instrument?"

"Oh, uh, I play the guitar and the piano," I stammered, blushing bright red, "I took violin lessons for a while when I was a kid, too. I was never very good."

"Do you sing?" She asked, gracefully taking a seat on the piano bench. She patted the spot next to her and I plopped down onto it, embarrassed at my lack of ballerina-like fluidity.

"A little. Though I haven't really done it in front of a real audience before," Unless you counted the small, failed gigs at retirement villages and shopping centres with my old band, _Genetic Wallflower_.

"My brother Edward is a musician, too," Alice said casually, pressing lightly on the keys, "I'm sure he'd love to hear you play sometime." I caught the glint of knowingness in her eyes again, and I knew it wasn't just my imagination.

We played around with the piano for the remainder of the lesson, ignoring the holes being burnt into the back of my skull. It was getting easier to brush them off, hell; I'd been doing it my whole life!

I followed Angela to our next class, one of my newly assigned ones. I'd had to shuffle my entire school schedule around to accommodate my new 'handicap'.

"Are you going to sit with us today, Bella?" Angela asked when the lunch bell rang. I shook my head.

"I think I'm going to head back to the music room. Get a jump on the homework, you know?" She smiled in understanding, waved and head off to the cafeteria. I really did like Angela.

While walking across the grass, I managed to snap pictures of people playing a very soggy, muddy game of soccer, and a couple practically welded together against a wall. I cringed, not seeing the appeal in the eating of another person's face.

When I got to the music room, it was empty, just how I wanted it to be. I walked straight over to the baby piano and dumped my bag next to it, placing my camera inside. Gently, I lifted the lid and sat down on the bench, running my fingers over the keys.

It wasn't in the greatest condition, the keys had grime on them, the paint was fading and chipped, and the peddles were worn.

I relished the sound of the keys as I pressed down with my fingers. It had been so long since I played for real. I loved my guitar, but there was just something about the piano that I was inexplicably drawn too.

Softly, I began to play. The clear music surged around me as my fingers danced along the keys. I closed my eyes, letting the sound wash over me.

The final notes echoed through the room, suddenly followed by the sound of slow clapping. I screeched in shock, falling off the piano bench in surprise. I felt my breathing start to clam up, my lungs squeezing frantically as I tried to breath.

Wheezing and huffing, I scrambled on my knees for my backpack, yanking at the zipper, hysterically searching for my inhaler.

Two pale white, cold, very familiar hands pushed mine away, smoothly undoing the zipper before reaching in and handing me the inhaler.

I grabbed it, shoved the nozzle in my mouth, and pressed down on the button. I gratefully breathed in the mist, pressing again and sucking in a second cloud of medicine. I felt my lungs relax, my breathing evening out. With one last puff, my wheezing stopped all together and my panic began to subside.

"Are you okay, Bella?" Edward asked, gently taking my inhaler from my hands and putting it back in my bag. I blushed a bright, searing red, nodding meekly. I was so embarrassed to have just had an asthma attack in front of Edward _frickin_ Cullen.

Like he didn't have enough reason to think I was a freak.

"I'm fine," I croaked. I leant back against the leg of the piano, my long hair swinging out like a brown curtain in front of my face. I took slow, deep breathes, trying to sooth my still pounding heart.

"What are you doing here?" I asked him, absently playing with and pulling at the ends of my hair.

"I was just passing by. That was," I froze as gentle fingers lifted my hair and tucked it behind my ear, "until I heard you play. You're very talented, Bella."

I avoided his piercing gold eyes, pulling at a loose thread on my jeans. I had never been comfortable with praise. I felt like I didn't deserve it, and resisted the urge to shove the words back down his oh-so-charming throat.

"Thanks," I instead replied lamely. I dared to glance up at Edward's face, our eyes locking together. His golden gaze burned into me, that strange expression of confusion and curiosity again on his face.

The moment was shattered by the screeching sound of the lunch bell. I snapped back to reality, rising to my feet with a jump. Being as uncoordinated as I was, I lost my balance as I stood, rocking unsteadily on my heels, wheeling my arms to gain some equilibrium without crashing into the piano.

"Bella, are you alright?" Edward asked. He moved to steady me, but I held my hand out, my balance returning.

"Fine fine, just a bit wobbly," I insisted, bending to pick up my bag. I swung it onto my shoulder and looked over at Edward, "You coming to Biology?" He nodded.

"Eventually. I have some things I need to do first." I shrugged.

"Fair go," I replied, making my way to the front of the room. I looked back at Edward, who was now sitting on the piano bench, watching me, "See ya there."

As I walked down the wet path, past the edge of the forest, a strange chill shot through my body. I whipped around, scanning the trees. The feeling that someone was watching me crept through me.

I was almost alone now, only a few small groups of students left milling around, but I felt as though I was the only person in the world. Not in the good, romantic way, I mean in the evil, stalker way. Brushing it off as best I could, I continued on my way to class, feeling extremely and utterly freaked.

I spotted the Cullens and the Hales over by the cafeteria, standing in a close circle and talking intently, their heads close together and their mouths moving rapidly. I wondered absently how Edward had gotten out of the music room without passing me. The guy was like a freakin' ninja!

Suddenly I felt a sharp, searing sting in the palm of my right hand. With a gasp and a sharp yelp I wrenched it to my chest, just now noticing the sharp shaft of metal protruding from the side of the building I had leant my hand on.

A gash ran diagonally from one side of my palm to the other, dark red blood welling rapidly on my skin, the frigid wind blowing droplets onto the ground and staining the grey pavement a wet red.

The smell of the blood reached my nose and the world started to tip, swaying, pulsing sickeningly. I stumbled forward, reaching to steady myself on the ground as the concrete swirled to meet me. My hand throbbed, the blood running over in tiny rivers that joined into a single droplet on the back of my hand.

"Bella! Bella, oh my gosh, are you okay?" Alice's tinkling voice cut through the thick haze of my mind, heavy footsteps slapping on the damp ground.

"Oh man, what happened?" I recognized the new voice as Emmett, although how I wasn't sure. Everything was going dark and noises sounded like they were coming from underwater.

"She's sliced her hand open. Give me something to stop the flow of blood! Oh god...it's everywhere!"

"Come on Alice, focus! Rose and Jasper are dealing with Edward; we need to do what we can here. Here, use this!"

"Your shirt, Emmett, really?" I felt the cloth press down on my injured hand, the vague notion that something was wrong with Edward barely registering in my mind.

"I have a tank top on, sis, hold your tiny horses!" The sound of booming laughter made my head pound painfully. I felt my stomach turn and my throat convulse.

"Crap, she's going green! She's gonna hurl!" Emmett cried.

"Not on these shoes she's not, they're Tory Burch! Quick, pick her up and get her to sick bay, I'll keep the shirt on her hand. You're okay Bella, we'll take care of you."

Strong arms wrapped around my back and legs, and the ground suddenly turned to nothing beneath me. I felt my hand pulled down, the rag that was once Emmett's shirt still pressed firmly onto the cut.

A rush of warm air signalled our arrival at the nurse's office. I squeezed my eyes shut against the painful florescent lights.

"Oh my goodness!" Nurse Patterson, a woman in her fifties who dressed like she lived in the 70s cried, "What's happened to her?"

"Bella cut her hand on some broken metal framing by the cafeteria. She's semi-conscious and was bleeding quite heavily," Alice explained as Emmett placed me down on the thin mattress of the sick bay bed. The paper crackled ominously under my weight. I heard shuffling, and the shirt, which I now assumed was just a blood soaked rag, was removed from my hand.

"Well, the bleeding seems to have stopped for the most part, that's a good sign. It's not very deep, which means she won't need anything more than paper stitches." Nurse Patterson mused, "She's had her tetanus shot, according to her records, but I'll put some antibacterial on it just to make sure. Bella will be fine once the nausea passes."

It already was. My headache was fading, and the rolling in my stomach had slowed. My hand still stung, but I could open my eyes without wincing now.

Alice helped me to sit up on the bed while Nurse Patterson went to work on my hand. She spread some antibacterial cream on my cut and stretched six paper stitches across the cut to hold it together. A white bandage was then wrapped around my whole palm.

"You'll want to change the dressings every four hours, but you should be all better before you know it." Nurse Patterson said as she clipped the bandage tightly.

"I think we should take Bella home, don't you, Nurse Patterson?" Alice asked sweetly, her big gold eyes fluttering persuasively.

"Of course. Can't have you reopening that wound in Gym, can we young lady?" She ribbed playfully, and I felt my cheeks flare hot.

"I need to go check in with the family," Alice announced, "you okay to take her Emmett?"

"Totally. Me and Bella are tight," Emmett winked at me, and I couldn't help but smile a little. His joy was infectious.

Nurse Patterson handed me a box of fresh bandages, a roll of uncut paper stitches, and some antibacterial cream, and I thanked her for her help before Alice, Emmett and I set off.

"Thanks for your help, guys," I said to them, cradling my hand close to my chest. Alice smiled and placed a gentle hand on my shoulder and Emmett mussed my hair.

"No problem, Bella. We're just glad you're okay...again," the 'again' was added a little sheepishly. I blushed again.

"Yeah, I guess I don't have the best of luck, do I?" That was the understatement of the century. My bad luck was legendary back home. Lost objects, broken bones, accidents, slips, falls, bumps, bruises. The amount of times I'd been in the emergency room, or in fact sent someone _else_ to the emergency room was downright ridiculous.

Alice slipped away with a wave, heading for the edge of the woods. Emmett guided me to my truck, opening the passenger side door for me.

"You're a gem," I said thankfully, climbing awkwardly into the cab of the truck. I pulled my keys from my pocket and handed them to him as he swung gracefully into the seat next to me.

Emmett's cell phone rang as he drove, the tiny silver object vibrating loudly.

"What's going on Jazz? ... Yeah she's fine. I'm driving her home. How's Edward? ... Typical. Just let him sulk for a while, he'll be fine by morning. ... Yeah, talk to you later." Snapping the phone shut, Emmett smiled tightly over at me.

"Everything okay?" I asked. He chuckled.

"Just Edward being his usual emo self. He's all upset that he wasn't there to help you." I wasn't sure that was the truth, considering what I had heard when he and Alice were helping me. But then again, I had been near to passed out. Maybe I'd been hearing things.

Emmett pulled into the driveway just as rain began to come down. It wasn't hard, just a sprinkle, but I knew that could change at any moment.

"Thanks for all your help, Emmett. How are you going to get home?"

"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. You just take care of yourself." He pulled the keys from the ignition and handed them to me before coming round to help me out of the car. I walked to the front door, turning to wave goodbye as I unlocked it, but he was already gone.

*.*.*.*.*

"Yeah, it's just a cut dad, I'm totally fine."

"Are you sure, Bella? I can come home right now if you need me." I rolled my eyes. Charlie had slipped into over-protective police chief mode half way through my telling him of my latest injury. I stood in the kitchen, closing the fridge with my elbow and holding a can of 7Up with my left hand.

"Don't worry about me. You just do your job. What would Forks do if their head of police just up and walked off the job because his accident-prone daughter had _another_ accident?" He chuckled.

"Okay, I see your point. Just please; don't do anything to hurt yourself again before I get home."

"I won't, I promise."

"Good. I love you."

"Love you too. Bye." I clicked the phone off and placed it back on the hook. My can of 7Up stood on the bench, beads of icy water running down the side.

I placed my elbow against the side and grasped the tab with my left hand. As I tried to pry it open, I couldn't get my clumsy fingers around the little metal lip.

"Come on, you stupid can!" I muttered, my eyebrows creasing together. I pulled harder, and the can suddenly slipped.

"Crap on a cracker!" I moaned, the sharp metal slicing clean through the skin of my thumb. The can fell to the ground, opening with a hiss and spilling fizzy drink all over the floor and myself. This mark was only small, but it was deep enough for a trickle of blood to slid down and land in the mess on the floor.

As I bent down to grab the can, the overwhelming feeling that I was no longer alone washed over me, the same as it had right before I cut myself at school.

I put the now half-empty can on the kitchen table, stepping over the puddle of 7Up to look around my front hall.

"Hello? Is someone there?" I yelled, feeling like a complete tool for yelling in an empty house. I picked up the phone and dialled Charlie's number, frowning as I all I got was dial tone. The weather had picked up, but I didn't think it was enough to bring the phone lines down.

The house was eerily quiet, save for the rhythmic beating of the rain outside and the whir of the refrigerator. I turned to grab the mop that was leaning on the stairs, and gave a yelp of surprise.

A man was leaning on my stairs.

He was pale white, average looking, with non-descript features that you would easily look over in a crowd; short brown hair, wiry muscles, and was wearing ordinary, everyday clothes. A fitting t-shirt and jeans with the ends tattered and stained with mud around his bare feet.

But...his eyes. His eyes were dark, almost black, with a ring of ruby red around the pupil. I'd never seen anything like them. They scared the ever-loving snot out of me.

"Hello Isabella." He said pleasantly, his voice like the ones you here in car ads on TV.

"W-w-who are you? How'd you get in my house? How do you know my name?" He simply smiled at me, as if I amused him.

"1, my name is James. Two, you left the door unlocked, and three...well I guess you could say some people who work at schools are surprisingly easy to persuade." I stood frozen in fear, my heart hammering in my chest.

"What do you want with me?" I asked in a small voice. James smiled at me again, chuckling.

"You intrigue me, Isabella. I was simply passing through, on my way to Seattle, when I heard rumours. Do you want to know what those rumours were, Isabella?" He spoke to me as though speaking to a small child. Without waiting for a reply, he continued, pushing away from the wall and walking slowly towards me.

"I heard, that there was a girl in this tiny, rain soaked town who was said to have the sweetest smelling blood in 500 years," He picked up a piece of my hair and twirled it around in his fingers, before sniffing it delicately, "You know what? I think they were right. Mm, freesia, I think. Lavender, perhaps? With hints of strawberry and cinnamon. Intoxicating, truly intoxicating, my dear."

"Blood?" I was extremely confused. What did he mean blood? "What are you some kind of vampire or something?" My joking fell flat. The look that James gave me was enough to stop my breathing.

"How perceptive of you, Isabella. Although I am quite disappointed. I was hoping for a bit of a showdown, some excitement, considering how that Cullen boy almost killed you when you cut your hand today." James picked up my bandaged hand and unwound my bandages so fast I didn't feel my hand move. He gazed at the gash in my skin almost wishfully. "Such a pretty hand. So delicate, so soft."

"Why would Edward want to kill me?" I asked, too afraid to wrench my hand away. James looked at me, his expression suggesting I had missed some big hint.

"Why, to get your blood my dear. The will power of the giant and the pixie girl were quite astonishing, I must say. If it were me, I would have drained you instantly." Several things suddenly hit me all at once.

"It was you. Watching me from the woods. And the Cullens...they're vampires too?"

"Of course, well done for finally figuring it out. Now, if you don't mind, we're going to have to cut this short. Your thumb is still bleeding and I'm afraid my thirst has become too much to bare." Without any warning, James grasped me by the throat and hurled me across the room.

My back slammed into the wall, my body breaking through the thin drywalls and sailing through the living room. I hit the wall on the other side, my head cracking loudly on the corner of the coffee table when I landed.

I could feel I was bleeding from my head, I just couldn't figure out where. The floor under my hand was turning red, and I knew my cut had reopened when I tried to steady myself.

I saw James through my quickly blurring vision, his expression twisted into one of hunger and hate. He launched himself at me, and in that moment, I knew I was going to die.

Everything had happened so fast. I didn't even have the time left to tell Edward that I maybe, kind of, sort of like liked him. I didn't get to tell Alice and Angela that they was the closest thing to friends I'd had in years.

James's arm scooped under my limp body, lifting me as his teeth slid like hot butter into my neck. I tried to scream, but the colours of the world were slowly draining to black and white, my attempt at a struggle garbling in the back of my throat.

Before I passed into the next life, my mind carried me away to beautiful dreams of Edward and me together forever, finally giving in to the desires I'd held at bay for so long.

Before I could even begin to enjoy it, everything went black.

**Loved it? Hated it? Do I need to change the whole thing? Please leave me some love, it keeps me sane! I will try to update under eight months next time, but I'm in year 12 so it may be a while. Do you guys want me to do an EPOV next or stick with Bella? Let me know, lovelies!**


End file.
